Shoe press



, jufiy 4 W33; E. A. HAMMARSJO 1,916,265

SHOE PRES S Filed Dec. 8, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 lufiy 4, 19330 E. A. HAMMARSJO a 9 SHOE PRESS Filed Dec. 8, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented July 4, 1933 UNITED STATES ERIK A. HAMMARSJO, OF ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS SHOE PRESS Application filed December 8, 1930. Serial No. 500,690.

This invention relates to a new and improved shoe press especially designed for use by shoemakers in the repairing of shoes, but

also suitable for use in shoe factor1es.

1 Shoe presses are used in the cementing of soles and halfsoles, and have been of various constructions. Those using ordinary rubber pads have given a fair degree of satisfaction, but the difliculty has been to get theproper distribution of pressure. That led to considerable complications in the construction of presses of that kind. Hydraulic or pneumatic presses offered uniform pressure d1stribution, but, so far as I am aware, the construction of these presses has left a great deal to be desired. For one thing, it was very difficult to make the bladder water-tight or air-tight by clamping the same onto a base with a clamping ring, and such construction was, furthermore, too cumbersome and expensive. It is, therefore, the principal obje ct of my invention to provide a shoe press of the hydraulic or pneumatic type having the bladder molded as a complete sac or container which can be assembled in place or removed with very little difliculty, and which requires no complicated fastening means, but is arranged to be held in place simply by friction. This construction, in addition to being simpler, more compact, and cheaper to manufacture, is absolutely leak-proof.

Another object of the invention is to form the bladder so that the top wall is limited in its depression by engagement with the bottom wall in the vicinity of the ball portion of the shoe, thus relieving the bladder of destructive stresses and strains and utilizing the marginal portions of the bladder mainly as the cushioning means to force the edges of the sole against the shoe for proper cementing.

Another object consists in the provision of a fracture plate in connection with the blad- 5 der, the breaking of which under excessive pressure of the clamping screw will relieve the rest of the press of the strains that mightotherwise result in breaking and mean a considerable loss to the owner of the press, the fracture place being replaceable at an insignificant cost as compared with the cost of the other parts of the press.

Another object consists in the provision of resilient means in connection with the shoe clamping means for preventing distortion of the shoe.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in whichigure 1 is a plan view of a shoe press made in accordance with invention; CO

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section showing the base in plan with the right hand bladder removed from its cavity so as to'disclose the fracture plate, and with the left hand bladder shown in cross-section;

Fig. 3 is a vertical. cross-section in the plane of the line 33 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section taken in the plane of the line H of Figure 1; Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section through one of the bladders, and

Fig. 6 is a side view of a last illustrating the application thereto of a heating element, in accordance with my invention.

Similar reference numerals are applied to corresponding parts throughout the views.

The press illustrated is a one-pair press, the base 10 being suitably cast with two cavities or recesses 11 therein, side by side, for reception of two bladders or pads 12. Flanges 13 are provided at the corners of the base with holes 14 therein to permit fastening the base onto a frame. For example, a four-pair press is made by fastening four one-pair presses onto the four sides of a square frame, mounted for indexing movement on a base so that one press after another can be brought up to position for use. However, where the press is to be used by itself, the base may be arranged to rest on a pair of ribs 15 extending transversely of the bottom thereof and suitably cast integral therewith.

A yoke 16 has jaw portions 17 provided thereon at the lower ends thereof by means of which the same is slidable fore and aft on the base 10, as indicated in Fig. 3. The yoke has clamping screws 18 threaded through the cross portion thereof to cooperate with the bladders 12 to clamp shoes thereon in the cementing of halfsoles. It is common practice to provide lasts 19 to fit inside the shoes to hold the same to the proper shape during the cementing of the halfsoles. A small presser foot 20 is provided to cooperate with each of the clamping screws to transmit pressure to the lasts. So much for a general understanding of the shoe press embodying the various novel features of my invention.

Attention is first called to the bladders or pads 12, forming one important phase of my invention. Heretofore, hydraulic or pneumatic shoe presses ordinarily had the bladders provided in the form of pads clamped about the edges thereof onto the base. It was very difiicult to keep the same from leaking, be-. cause of the high pressure to which the fluid cushioning medium is subjected. These constructions also had to be rather massive in order to afford enough body in the rubber for clamping purposes. As a result, shoe presses equipped with such bladders were rather cumbersome. The amount of material required in the production thereof also made for proportionately higher cost. These objections are avoided in accordance with my invention by making the bladders 12 in the form of complte sacs or containers each molded in one piece of rubber and arranged to be simplylaid in the cavity provided therefor in the base. The pocket 21 molded in the bladder is arranged to be filled, or substantially filled, with water, although any other suitable fluid cushioning medium may be used. Two plugs 22, which have a close fit in holes 23 provided in one of the side walls of the bladder, serve to seal the same after the bladder has been filled, and it will be evident from inspection of Figs. 2 and 4 that when the bladder is entered in the cavit provided therefor in the base, the plugs are ept in place by reason of engagement at their outer ends with the side of the cavity. The hollowing out of the plugs, indicated at 24, almost all of the way to the outer ends thereof, is of advantage in that the water has a tendency to spread the plugs more and more the higher the pressure is raised. I prefer to dispense with any form of fastening means for the bladders, and for that reason, have provided each bladder with a transverse groove 25 on one end thereof to receive a transverse bead 26 formed on the base 10, the bead being arranged to enter the groove when the bladder is entered in the cavity in the base, as shown in Fig. 4? To further assist 111 holding the bladders in place, I prefer to make the other end of each bladder on a taper, as indicated at 27 in Figs. 4 and 5, and to. correspondingly taper the sides, as indicated at 28, in Fig. 3, the ends and sides of the'cavities 11 in the base being complementarilv inclined, as appears in Figs. 3 and 4 to grip the bladders frictionally about their edges. As a further means of insuring a good frictional hold for the bladders in the cavities, small stud projections 29 are suitably formed on the bottom of the bladders, preferably near the end remote from the grooves 25, and these studs are made slightly oversize with relation to holes 30 provided in the bottom of the cavities in the base so as to have a press fit in said holes, as indicated in Fig. 4. It should be clear from the above that there is no danger of the bladders giving any trouble in service, owing to leakage, because the bladders are self-contained units molded in one piece, and do not depend upon the tightening of clamping rings or other means to make them water-tight. The elimination of the clamping means, and the dispensing with means for holding the bladders in place, reduces the construction to practically the simplest and most compact form conceivable. As a result, the press is available at much lower cost.

In molding the bladders, I prefer to have the top wall 31 of appreciable thicknessv to insure the desired serviceability. A tonguelike projection 32 is suitably formed integral with the top wall at the rear end of the bladder to pro ect over the top of the base and fit the shank or instep of the shoe, as clearly appears in Fig. 4. The bottom wall 33 is also made preferably of appreciable thickness, especially intermediate the ends of the bladder so as to provide a fiat face 34 under the ball of the shoe for the engagement of the top wall with this face when a shoe is clamped onto the bladder, as shown in Fig. 4. The volumetric capacity of the pocket 21 is, in fact, reduced to such an extent that almost immediately after application of clamping pressure, the top wall 31 comes into engagement with the bottom wall 33 at 34, as indicated in Fig. 4, the small amount of water in the pocket being crowded to the sides, thereby causing the bladder to bulge upwardly, as shown in Fig. 4, and conform itself to the bottom of the shoe, and accordingly press the outer sole against the insole at the marginal portions thereof, as well as at the center. Obviously, the pressure is exerted on the sole first at the center and farther and farther outwardly toward the edges, the more the clamping screw is tightened. This tends to force out any excess glue and makes for uniform distribution thereof. By virtue of the fact that the middle of the bladder is limited in its depression, as just described, it will be clear that I may obtain much heavier clamping pressure on the sole without having the pressure in the bladder raised to a dangerously high point.

Shoe presses frequently get into the hands of unskilled workmen who are either careless or incapable of judging to what extent the clamping screws should be tightened, and as a result, the yokes or other parts of the presses are apt to be broken under the excessive strain. I, therefore, prefer to provide openings 35 in the bottom of the cavities 11,

Lugs 39 are formed integral with the ribs 15 in a plane substantially below the shoulders 38, and on the other two sides of the openings 35, so that when the plates break in two, the halves drop down, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 3, and come to rest on the lugs 39 while still partly supported by the shoulders 38. The breakage of the plates does not mean rupture of the bladders, owing to the fact that the plates when fractured are supported as indicated. The special form of the openings 35, without square corners, minimizes the likelihood of the bladders being damaged when the plates are fractured, the bladders being arranged to sag uniformly from all sides of the openings when the fracture occurs. The provision of these yield members means quite a saving to the owner of the press because a fracture plate can be replaced at very little expense. If desired, several extra fracture plates may be furnished with each press when sold so that the press will not have to remain out of commission for a while when a fracture plate is broken.

In the operation of the press, the foot 20 is adjusted to an approximately central position so that when the screw 18 is tightened, the pressure will be concentratedat the ball portion of the shoe and the latter will-not be distorted out of shape. It is found that with the pressure concentrated at the ball portion and the bladder bulging upwardly toward the shank of the shoe, there is a tendency for the heel to rise, such that if nothing were done to hold it down, the shoe would become bent out of shape. For that reason, I provide a coiled torsion spring 40, one end of which is bent to provide an arm 41 slidably received in a bearing 42 provided on the butt portion of the presser foot 20, and the other end of which is bent to provide another arm 43 which extends downwardly normally substantially at right angles to the arm 41, but is arranged to be deflected to the position shown in Fig. 4, by reason of engagement of its hooked extremity 44 with the inside of the shoe at the heel when the presser foot 20 is forced down under the tightening of the screw 18. The spring 40 can obviously be adjusted fore and aft in the bearing 42 to bring the hooked end'44 thereof in proper spaced relation to the presser foot, depending on the size of the shoe. It is obvious that the spring 40 exerts yielding pressure downwardly at the heel of the shoe in proportion to the clamping and pressure exerted on the shoe.

and the shoe is, therefore, kept in proper shape.

In Fig. 6 I have shown a last 19 having a heating element 45 imbedded in the bottom thereof with a view to heating the sole from the inside of the shoe to hasten the drying of the glue or cement used for fastening the half sole. I havefound that it requires much less heating to obtain the desired results when the heating is done in this way than where the heat has to penetrate through the half sole from the outside, the inner wall being so much thinner than the outer sole, as is well known. This speeds up the work considerably and makes for uniformly good jobs.

The heating element may be of any suitable I or preferred type having prongs 46 constituting the terminals therefor and projecting from the top of the last at the rear end thereof so that a plug receptacle 47 can be applied thereto to make connection with an extension cord 48. The last is ordinarily ofwood so that I contemplate the provision of an aluminum casing 49 to be laid and suitably secured in a recess formed in the bottom of the last. The heating element can be insulated from this casing by any suitable insulating material 50. In the use of this type of last I contemplate having a time control unit, such as is commonly used on electric toasters and the like, which will permit the current to remain on only for a predetermined length of time, ust suflicient to properly take care of the drying. In that way,

the current consumption will be reduced to a minimum and the operator does not have to give each ress so much attention as would otherwise e necessitated.

No doubt the foregoing description has conveyed a clear understanding of all of the objects and advantages of my invention. The appended claims are drawn with a view to covering all variations coming within the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, such terms as top and bottom, and so forth, .found in the claims are used in a purely relative sense and should not be regarded as placing any'definite limitation on their scope, inasmuch as it is immaterial from which direction the shoe bears on the support therefor.

I claim:

1. In a shoe press, the combination with means for placing a shoe under pressure, of a support for the shoe having a shallow cavity therein, and a hollow bladder of resilient flexible material fitting snugly in the cavity in said support and arranged to serve as a cushion for the shoe, the bladder having a pocket therein extending substantially the full length and width thereof and substantially filled with a fluid cushioning medium, said bladder having one or more holes provided in the side walls thereof, and one or more closure plugs fitting snugly in said holes to seal the same, said plugs being removable from said bladder when the same is removed from the cavity in said support, and being 5 held in place in said bladder by engagement with the side wall of the cavity when the bladder is disposed in said cavity.

2. In a shoe press, the combination with means for placing a shoe under pressure, of

a support for the shoe having a shallow cavity therein, and a hollow bladder of resilient flexible material fitting snugly in the cavity in said support and arranged to serve as a cushion for the shoe, the bladder having a pocket therein extending substantially the full length and width thereof and substantially filled with a fluid cushioning medium, said bladder being constructed with thick side walls, one of said side walls being formed to provide a longitudinal external groove, and the corresponding side wall of the cavity being provided with a longitudinal inwardly projecting bead for reception in said groove to lock the bladder in place in the cavity.

3.-In a shoe press, the combination with means for placing ashoe under pressure, of a support for the shoe having a shallow cavity therein, and a hollow bladder of resilient flexible material fitting snugly in the cavity in said support and arranged to serve as a cushion for the shoe, the bladder having a pocket therein extending substantially thev full length and width thereof and substantially filled with a fluid cushioning medium, the one end of said bladder being provided with a groove, and the corresponding end of the cavity being provided with a bead for entry in said groove whereby to hold the bladder in place in the cavity, the other end of said bladder being tapered so as to be bigger at the bottom than at the top, and the corresponding end wall of the cavity being complementarily inclined to further insure holding the bladder in place. 4. In a shoe press, the combination with means for placing a shoe under pressure, of a support for the slim having a shallow cavity therein, and a hollow bladder of resilient flexible material fitting snugly in the cavity in said support and arranged to serve as a cushion for the shoe, the bladder having a pocket therein extending substantially the full length and width thereof and substantially filled with a fluid cushioning medium, the bladder having one or more stud-like projections rovided on the bottom wall thereof arrange to have a pressed fit in registering holes provided therefor in the bottom wall of the cavity in said support, whereby to hold the bladder in place in the cavity.

5. In a shoe press, the combination with means for placing a shoe under clamping pressure, of a support for the shoe, a pad of cushioning material disposed on the support and arranged to have the shoe clamped there on and a fracture plate on the support'for supporting that portion of the pad where the greatest pressure is concentrated, said plate being arranged to fracture when subjected to a predetermined pressure.

6. In a shoe press, the combination with means for placing a shoe under clamping pressure, of a bladder containing cushioning fluid and arranged to have the shoe clamped thereon, a support having a cavity therein for reception of the bladder, there being an opening provided at the approximate center of the bottom wall of said cavity, and a fracture plate disposed in said opening for supporting the bladder, the same being arranged to yield in the event of excessive pressure of the shoe on the bladder.

7, A shoe press as set forth in claim 6 wherein the plate is supported at diametrical- 1yl opposed points in a predetermined plane, t e plate having the weak point thereof between said supports, the press further including secondary supports below the plane of the first supports and disposed intermediate the same to cooperate with the fragments of the plate after fracture thereof.

8. A shoe press as set forth in claim 6 wherein the opening in the bottom wall of the cavity is formed so that upon fracture of the plate the bladder is arranged to sag in said opening substantially uniformly from all sides thereof, the press including means for limiting downward movement of the plate upon fracture thereof.

9. In a shoe press, the combination of a pad serving as a cushion whereon to clamp the sole portion of a shoe, a last entered in the sole portion of the shoe for clamping purposes, a screw for applying pressure to the last, a presser foot bearing on top of the last and having the screw engaging the top thereof, and spring means acting between the presser foot and the heel portion of the shoe to force the latter downwardly simultaneously with the application of clamping pressure to the sole portion.

10. In a shoe press, the combination of a pad serving as a cushion whereon to clamp the sole portion of a shoe, a last entered in the sole portion of the shoe for clamping purposes, a screw for applying pressure to the last, a presser foot bearing on top of the last and having the screw engaging the top thereof, and spring means acting between the presser foot and the heel portion of the shoe to force the latter downwardly simultaneously with the application of clamping pressure to the sole portion, the spring means comprising a torsion spring having one end thereof bent to provide an arm for mounting the spring on the presser foot and having the other end thereof bent to provide a downwardly projecting arm to hear at its extremity against'the inside of the shoe at the heel portion.

11. In a shoe press, the combination of a pad serving as a cushion whereon to clamp the sole portion of a shoe, a last entered in the sole portion of the shoe for clamping purposes, a screw for applying pressure to the last, a pressure foot bearing on top of the last and having the screw engaging the top thereof, and spring means acting between the presser foot and the heel portion of the shoe to force the latter downwardly simultaneously with the application of clamping pressure to the sole portion, the spring means comprising a torsion spring having one end thereof bent to provide an arm for mounting the spring on the presser foot and having the other end thereof bent to provide a downwardly projecting arm to bear at its extremity against the inside of the shoe at the heel portion, the presser foot having a substantially horizontal bearing thereon in a fore and aft plane, and the first mentioned arm of said spring being slidably received in said bearing to permit fore and aft adjustment of the spring.

12. In a shoe press, comprising a hollow receptacle to receive abladder, a one-piece hollow bladder therein of molded rubber or equivalent material providing a shallow pocket extending substantially the full length and width of the bladder, the pocket being arranged to be filled with water or the equivalent fluid cushioning medium, and closure means for sealing the pocket in the bladder, the closure means comprising one or more plugs entered in holes provided in the wall of the bladder, the said plugs being hollowed out from the inner ends to a point near the outer ends within the holes so as to be ex-' panded in the holes under the pressure of the fluid in the bladder.

13. In a shoe press, the combination with means for placing a shoe under clamping pressure, of a support for the shoe, a pad of cushioning material disposed on the support and arranged to have the shoe clamped thereon, a fracture plate on the support for supporting that portion of the pad where the greatest pressure is concentrated, said plate being arranged to fracture when subjected to a predetermined pressure, and a secondary means of support for the pad below the plane of said plate to prevent rupture of the pad upon fracture of the plate.

14. In a shoe press, the combination with means for placing a shoe under pressure, of a support for the shoe having a shallow cavity therein, and a hollow bladder of resilient flexible material fitting snugly in the cavity and arranged to serve as a cushion for the sole portion of the shoe, the bladder having a pocket therein extending substantially the full length and width thereof and substantially filled with a fluid cushioning medium, whereby the same is adapted to conform itself to the shape of the shoe bottom bladder having a pocket therein for a fluid cushioning medium extending lengthwise and crosswise thereof intermediate the top and bottom walls of the bladder and beyond the marginal edges of the shoe bottom, said pocket being shallow whereby to permit engagement of the top wall of the bladder with the bottom wall when the shoe resting on the bladder is placed under pressure, and the top and bottom walls of said bladder being of suflicient thickness whereby when the same are brought together they serve as a solid cushion of resilient material throughout the area of their engagement.

16. A shoe press as set forth in claim 15 wherein the top wall of the bladder is thinner than the bottom wall whereby to have the desired flexibility and conform' itself readily to the shape of the shoe bottom, the bottom wall being of greater thickness whereby to serve primarily as a cushion of resilient material when engaged by the top wall.

17. In a shoe press comprising means for placing a shoe under pressure, and a support for the shoe, a hollow bladder of resilient flexible material arranged to serve as a cushion for the shoe on said support, the

bladder having a pocket therein for a fluid cushioning medium extending lengthwise and crosswise thereof intermediate the top and bottom walls of the bladder and beyond the marginal edges of the shoe bottom, said bladder having its top and bottom walls so constructed whereby to come into engagement at least at the central portion of the bladder when the shoe resting on the bladder is placed under ressure, the top and bottom walls when lirought together affording a suflicient thickness of resilient material .to serve as a solid cushion throughout the area of engagement.

18. A shoe press as set forth in claim 17 wherein the top wall of the bladder is made of reduced thickness at least in the marginal portions which do not come into engagement with the bottom wall, whereby to have the desired flexibility to conform to the shape of the shoe bottom er pressure.

19. In a shoe press comprising means for placing a shoe under pressure, a support for the. Shoe, and cushion pad means on said supas the shoe is placed un;

port comprising spaced top and bottom walls of resilient material extending outwardly beyond the marginal-edges of the shoe bottom and having a fluid cushioning material in the space therebetween, the top wall being flexible toward the bottom wall and the latter being rigidly supported, said walls being normally close enough to permit engagement of the top wall with the bottom wall when the shoe resting thereon is placed under pressure, and said walls being of sufficient thickness whereby when the same are brought together they serve as a solidly supported cushion of resilient material throughout the area of their engagement.

20. A shoe press as set forth in claim 19 wherein the top wall is thinner than the bottom wall whereby to have the desired flexibility and conform itself readily to the shape of the shoe bottom, the bottom wall being of greater thickness whereby to serve primarily as a cushion of resilient material when engaged by the top wall.

21. In a shoe press comprising means for placing a shoe under pressure, a support for the shoe, and cushion pad means on said support comprising spaced top and bottom walls of resilient material extending outwardly beyond the marginal edges of the shoe bottom and having a fluid cushioning material in the space therebetween, the top wall being flexible toward the bottom wall and the latter being rigidly supported, said walls being so constructed whereby to come into engagement at least at the central portion when the shoe resting thereon is placed under pressure, the top and bottom walls when brought together aflording a sufficient thickness of resilient material to serve as a solidly supported cushion throughout the area of their engagement.

22. A shoe press as set forth in claim 21 wherein the top wall is made of reduced thickness at least in the marginal portions which do not come into engagement with the bottom wall whereby to have the desired flexibility to conform to the'shape of the shoe bottom as the shoe is placed under pressure.

I 23. In a shoe press comprising a support, and means for placing a shoe under pressure thereon, a fluid chamber provided on said support extending lengthwise and crosswise thereof and beyond the marginal edges of the shoe bottom, the same being substantially filled with a fluid cushioning medium, a top wall for said chamber of flexible material whereon the shoe bottom is adapted to rest, said wall being sufliciently flexible to conform itself readily to the sha e of the shoe bottom and to flex toward the ottom wall of said chamber when the shoe resting thereon is placed under pressure, and means providing a cushion of resilient material for the central portion of the top wall, the same serving to limit downward flexing of the top wall so that the cushioning is throughout the area of engagement.

In witness of the foregoing I aflix my signature.

ERIK A. HAMMARSJO. 

